Over the years we’ve worked in lots of B2B markets with many products that (on the surface at least) come across as, well, shall we say ‘uninteresting’? More often than not, B2B products are complex, technical and ‘difficult’. Confronted with this, it can be hard to create a killer B2B value proposition. It’s the perennial challenge of B2B marketers; how to deal with this ‘product boredom’ when it comes to branding.
Don’t despair. Our view is that there’s no better opportunity to up your brand’s game when all around you is bland and boring. The less ‘interesting’ the product area, the easier it is to stand out. What’s required is a detailed approach to unpicking the details of your product’s real benefits to customers. This can often be hidden and frequently unexpected! Read how we do this, here.
Consumer marketers know that they have to stand out or die. Luckily for them, they have more glamorous and interesting features & benefits that are easier to unpick. And thus easier to leverage into a great value proposition. Undoubtedly it’s more challenging in the B2B space. We have technical products & services, which can be hard to differentiate and there are complicated stories to tell. But if you like a challenge (we do!) and you can dig deep enough into the soul of your products & markets (we do that too!), then you can create a B2B value proposition and brand story that really cuts through.
One great tip is to talk in real depth to your colleagues who are product experts. We’ve found some amazing insights buried away in the minds (and presentations) of engineers and sales people, for example. Here at M4G, the subject of B2B value proposition is really close to our hearts and we’ll be returning to it in future posts!
Photo; martina-misar-tummeltshammer-103131-unsplash